Dragon 2 Chapter 9 (Patreon)

It was Saturday, the day of the convention, and I was ready for whatever trouble the magi would bring. Getting out of one of Morgana’s nicer cars, it felt like a normal event.

Men in business suits and women dressed in a sensible level of wealth poured out of the parking garage alongside Morgana and I.

“What were you expecting? Pointy hats?” She asked, seeing my expression.

“Honestly? At least one pointy hat would be nice. Though, I do see a few robes.” There were a few attendees who either couldn’t be bothered with decorum or wanted to stand out, fitting the more typical robbed old man with a long beard stereotype. They seemed like the type that just was too old to give a shit.

I instantly liked them.

“Well, each and every person here has magic. It’s an advantage over other mortals, so it’s no wonder they end up more well off.” She waved her hand vaguely at a group of suited up men drinking and showing off their expensive watches. “Human nature includes a strong portion of avarice. Paranormal aren’t above it, but something about the shared threat that looms over us unites us when needed.”

I wasn’t quite sure how to take that; up until recently I had considered myself human. But it was fair to say that there were several people I’d known who would quickly choose wealth over most anything else.

I did love my hoard, but I needed to be better than that.

The beast agreed, and a sense of wanting to punish those that harmed others washed over me. I struggled to call it justice, but to the beast, it was a sort of primal justice that made it feel proud.

“It’s fine. We are just security, right?” I asked, as Morgana skipped the line and showed her phone to the desk.

We were given a set of badges with yellow ‘security’ labeled down the side. Then they waved us through.

More than a few of the pompous magi gave us strange looks, and more than a few of the men watched Morgana’s tight, leather-clad ass. My beast rose up again, wanting to fight, but I pushed him back down.

Morgana was our partner in this mercenary business, and she was the kind of woman that would make it known if she wanted something else. At least, that was my view on it. Morgana wasn’t exactly subtle about most things.

If she had any interest, she’d let me know.

“Morgana!” an overly enthusiastic Jared came up, strutting in his gray suit with a subtle pink pinstripe.

I could sense the same charming perfume on him and gave a snort to clear it out of my nose.

Following him was a small group, but they didn’t seem to give him much regard. I noted an older man just about as disgruntled with Jared as I was. There were two others, and based on the way the crowd parted around them, I knew they were highly regarded.

“Everyone, this is Morgana. She’s here for security.” He waved towards my partner, who was currently grumpy because she was weakened due to the daylight. But the small group lit up as Morgana was introduced.

“Professor McGregor.” The old man stated, grabbing Morgana’s hand with both of his own and shaking it forcefully. “A pleasure to meet you. Might we get a demonstration of spatial magic?”

“I’m here as security.” She picked up her badge for emphasis. “Hopefully, my magic isn’t needed.”

He seemed disappointed, and unlike the others, had no problem showing it.

“Candice.” The woman next to him paused before adding her last name, like it meant something. “Burnadesh.”

It probably was somewhat well known in the paranormal world, but it meant nothing to me.

“Florita De Leon.” The other woman introduced herself. She had an odd set of piercings that looked like they were made from real animal bones. There wasn’t anything obvious, but something about her made my skin crawl.

“Again, just security. This is my partner, Zach.” Morgana introduced me.

All of their eyes slid off of me as if I didn’t matter. My pride wanted me to show them just how much they should respect and fear me, but I held it back. It was easier to just be security.

There was a commotion of excitement in the crowd of magi, everybody flocking to an area where it sounded like somebody had just arrived.

Morgana and I made our way closer in case we needed to calm the crowd, and I quickly saw what was causing the commotion.

The Paranormal Council had arrived.

Jadelyn, her father, and even Sebastian were in attendance. Their guards, including the fox father-daughter duo, were trailing behind them.

What caught me completely off guard was a woman with green hair like summer grass and golden eyes like the summer sun. She blazed with so much mana that even without my eyes shifted, I felt like I could see it radiating off of her.

Morgana leaned in. “That’s the Summer Queen. Even the Faerie come out for the magi conference, mostly as a show of power to help keep them in line.”

“It’s November though, shouldn’t it be the Winter Queen?” Even I knew about the legends of the fae and the courts of the seasons.

“You’re partially right. Winter is in season, so she is currently ruling the Faerie realm. Her daughter rules the fall before her, just like the summer queen’s daughter, the spring queen does for her.” Morgana gestured to a less prominent version of the summer queen, who was standing behind her. “The summer and spring queen have time to be here.”

I remembered what I’d been told before; The Faerie were the third of the factions that ruled the council. Until now, they’d just been a name, almost a rumor. The power those two wielded made it clear why they could remain prominent without showing their faces.

Rupert, the patriarch of the Scalewright family, noticed us standing to the side and tossed me a scowl.

I took that to mean that he must know about my date with Jadelyn tonight. Now I had two disapproving fathers to deal with, and they were close. That boded well.

Where detective Fox looked like a disgruntled detective, Rupert was cut like a marble bust of Poseidon come to life. I had to admit it was a tad more intimidating than the detective, but that wouldn’t deter me at all from pursuing Jadelyn.

Jadelyn perked up and pushed through the throng of magi that had come to rub elbows. “Zach.”

“Didn’t know you’d be here.” I said as I felt the weight of dozens of eyes on me. Those that had just fawned over Morgana were trying to reevaluate me now that another of the more eligible paranormal females was talking to me.

Jadelyn gave me a broad smile. “I knew you’d be here.”

The weight of the onlookers’ gaze turned fiery hot as I went from interesting to competition. I knew that Jadelyn was now once again an eligible bachelorette, possibly the most influential one in the para world.

These magi and para around me had hopes of courting her. Too bad I had claimed her already.

My beast rose up, possessiveness spiking around the thought of these men desiring her, but I pushed it down. It wasn’t the time.

“Then you have me at a disadvantage. I know pretty much no one here.” My eyes drifted over to Scarlett, who was hanging back with a smirk.

Jadelyn grabbed my arm and pulled me along with her. “Then let me show you around. As a lost one I introduced to para society, I feel responsible that you understand the relationship between para and magi.”

I let her pull me along, tossing a look back at Morgana, who only gave me a wink and a thumbs up. “Then lead on Jade. I am here working security though, so I might have to step away.”

“We could use the extra security, anyway.” Jadelyn smiled around at the crowd.

I nearly laughed at her statement. Not only was everyone in the paranormal group powerful in their own right, but the Summer Queen standing near me felt like a nuclear fission test about to go off. She radiated power at levels I hadn’t felt before.

The summer queen noticed my attention and raised a green eyebrow in question. I wondered if I I wasn’t supposed to feel her power like I was. Focusing back on Jadelyn, I listened as magi came up to her.

No sooner had the group paused than Jared pushed his way forward, grabbing Jadelyn’s hand and pulling it up in an old world sort of handshake that felt like he was ready to kiss it. “Well hello. You are even lovelier in person.” His eyes shifted to me. “You just seem to be everywhere.” His statement wasn’t unpleasant, but there was a subtle undertone of warning within it.

Jadelyn was quick to respond. “You know Zach? He’s amazing, isn’t he? We are courting, and I think I might have found the one.”

More than a few people nearby suddenly coughed, including her father.

“Courting?” Jared asked, surprised. “I thought you were Morgana’s partner.” He said it with a smirk, clearly believing he was about to expose my infidelity in front of everybody.

“She’s my business partner, at least for now. Never know with my type; we are capable of loving many women.” I shrugged helplessly.

There was a gap of silence that lingered before being broken by the giggling of the Spring Queen.

A young man stepped forward and pointed a stick at me. Doing a double take, I realized it was actually a wand.

“I challenge you to a duel for the right to court Princess Scalewright.” I couldn’t help but notice the smug smile on Jared’s face as he took a step back.

However, Jadelyn cleared her throat. “As he is my guest currently, I invoke my right to defend him.”

“What?” I growled, not liking her stepping in front of me.

“Please?” Jadelyn looked into my eyes and Scarlett came to my other side.

“Take her up on it.” She whispered in my ear. “She needs this.”

I relented and nodded, taking a step back.

“Thank you. I’m sure you could handle this, but Scar warned me not to let you fight.” The lovely siren patted me on the arm and stepped away from me. The entire crowd seemed to give the group space.

Scarlett looked a bit reluctant at Jadelyn fighting, but she clearly thought it was best. And she was probably right. I wasn’t sure I could completely keep my shifting from happening, and having my arm shift would tell everybody what type of paranormal I was.

“You are new, a lost one?” A woman in a plain white button down and tight pencil skirt asked as I joined the ring as it formed.

“Yeah, I’m a lost one. I stumbled into this about four months ago when I figured out I wasn’t human. Is this a duel?”

She smirked. She was kind of cute, but in a very plain way that made her sort of forgettable. “Yes, it’s one thing that both para and magi society could agree on. Duels are used to resolve conflicts. In this case, the conflict is over you.”

I grumbled once more at the idea of someone else fighting my battles, and the beast agreed. “I’m Zach.” Holding out my hand, I introduced myself as Jadelyn squared up against the twerp with a crooked twig as a weapon.

“Sabrina. I’m new too, but to the magi.” She blushed. “It’s really hard to make friends when everyone has known each other since they were kids. I heard you were new and wanted to see if I could find someone to commiserate with.”

I understood her struggles more than she knew. “Yeah, everyone is kind of set in their ways, aren’t they?”

That earned me a smile. For some reason, I just felt comfortable about Sabrina.

She focused back on the fight. “She’s about to kick his butt, isn’t she?”

“Pretty sure. If not, I’ll just tear him apart.” I let out a low growl that rumbled in my chest.

She looked over at the two combatants. “His wand is far better done than the rest of his equipment.” She commented.

I let my eyes shift to see both of them. Jadelyn was wrapped in blue mana, while the twerp was wrapped in a sticky black fog. There was something about the black fog that felt familiar.

Since Sabrina seemed to be making herself comfortable, I decided to see what she knew about the duel and fighting. “So how do you think this is going to play out?”

“The guy has a decent stock of enchantments, but we have no idea what sort of spells he might have, or even what type of magi he is. Your girl is a siren, everybody knows that. She’ll cast like a water sorcerer.” Sabrina tried to work out how the battle would unfold.

I had to admit; I was a bit excited. I knew Jadelyn had magic, Scarlett had told me that, but I’d never seen her in a fight. She was just so above everything else in life, an untouchable princess, that I hadn’t even considered her training to fight.

But based on the way Jadelyn squared her feet and loosened her arms, she’d had training. “Fair enough. I’m biased, but Jadelyn looks like she knows what she’s doing. The guy has some unknowns, but I don’t see her losing.”

There was one thing nagging at me, though. It had all unfolded so quickly that it didn’t feel entirely natural. And if it was a setup, then the twerp might just be prepared to fight Jadelyn.

“I think you are right. Not that much will come of this; if it goes too far, someone will step in.” Sabrina agreed. “But it should still be an exciting duel to watch.”

Snorting, I didn’t think she understood just how dangerous a duel could become. “Is that how magi duels work? Because para duels end in death.”

“No! Really?” Sabrina gasped. “There’s no way anyone here is going to let harm come to the heir of the Scalewright clan. Even I know who she is.”

Sabrina seemed genuine, but I wondered if it was the perfect time for someone to attack her. An accident during the duel would be a blow to her father and their clan. As big as their business empire was, they had to have a host of enemies.

I watched the two fighters circle each other. I expected Jadelyn to wait for him to make a move, but she let out a clear note. Suddenly, it was like a fog bank had rolled. Our knees were quickly hidden beneath a dense, wet mist. Scales dotted her neck and shoulders, even creeping up at the edge of her jaw.

“Oh, she’s taking control of the field.” Sabrina commented. Seeing my confusion, she continued explaining. “She has sorcery of water, but it’s not that great when fighting on dry land. She could probably pop some water lines around us, but instead, she just spelled in a fog bank to give her some water and moisture to work with. It’s super smart.”

The magi jerked his hands forward and shouted something guttural, causing the fog to part around his hands. Casting, I watched as he shot two bursts of wind towards Jadelyn.

Luckily, she seemed capable of handling the attack. She lifted her left arm and a shield, similar to the one she’d given me before my duel with Simon, came out of a bracelet on her arm.

After dispelling the wind attack, Jadelyn sang a note while swaying her right hand like she was conducting an orchestra. Three arrows of water formed before firing forward like they were launched from a high-pressure hose.

The magi fumbled but managed to shout and blast the three arrows with a jet of fire that reduced them to steam and robbed their momentum.

“People always underestimate water.” Sabrina said. “They forget just how powerful it is.”

I looked at what she meant, seeing Jadelyn forming three more arrows and firing them again, only this time one at a time.

The wizard had to defend not against a single attack, but one spell spaced such that he had to cast three more jets of fire.

“She’s going to wear him down like that.” I realized.

Sabrina nodded with excited eyes. “Pretty, established and powerful. You have a winner there.”

I felt pride prickle in my chest as my beast tried to claim her. But I tried to settle him once more. We hadn’t even gone on a date yet. Although I was getting the distinct feeling, he wouldn’t let me subdue him much longer. “We’ll see tonight how we are together. It is actually our first date.” I replied to Sabrina, ignoring the battle with the beast.

“Oh!” she replied.. “Well, I hope you woo her. That father of hers looks like he hates you right about now, though.”

Over on the other side of the duel, Rupert had a neutral, stoney expression. But from time to time he’d look away from the fight and over in my direction; I couldn’t miss the anger he had towards me.

No doubt in his mind, I was to blame for her currently being embroiled in a fight.

But from what I’d seen so far, Jadelyn could handle herself. She currently had the wizard pinned down with a steady stream of water arrows.

As the magi became more frustrated, the wand Sabrina had mentioned before came into play. He flicked it forward and black lightning raced out of the wand.

A hand caught me even as I was trying to take a step forward. “She’s got it.”

The mist sank inward, capturing the black lightning in a bubble. The spell writhed and crackled as the energy of the spell bled out of the bubble slowly.

Jadelyn let the bubble hover before she pushed it at the wizard.

“I surrender.” He yelled, watching the bubble with terrified eyes.

“Oh, you don’t even want to see what kind of magic you tried to use on me?” There was a cold anger in Jadelyn’s eyes. If that spell was half as dangerous as it looked and had hit its target, I might not have had a date tonight.

To use something so lethal against her had been an attempted execution, but Jadelyn simply hovered the bubble in front of him. “Someone apprehends him. I want to know where he got that wand.” She commanded.

The wizard went from backing up slowly to pausing, something seeming to light up in his eyes and his face becoming horror struck.

“No, please, I don’t want to die.” He yelled a bit more before he threw himself into the bubble. The black lightning tore at his body, wrapping itself around him as he screamed and disintegrated before our eyes.

Sabrina hissed beside me. “That did not turn out like I expected.”

“No. I think that went rather poorly.” Scarlett corralled Jadelyn along with several other of her shadows and cordoned her off from everyone else. My girlfriend caught me watching and gave me a smile and a nonchalant wave, like this was just another day at work for her.

I realized that it actually might be. The two of them had kept Jadelyn’s life out of mine. Someone coming to attack her, then committing suicide, could be typical for them, but I sure as hell wasn’t used to it yet.